Photo Credit: Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports
We like to think players are so caught up in the game that they don’t notice when they’re approaching a statistical accomplishment. It’s not true.
The newest example of players exactly knowing their stats while in a game however, came pretty surprising. Earlier this week, two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo was stat padding.
With the Bucks leading the Wizards, Antetokounmpo grabbed the rebound of a missed three with 11 seconds remaining. Said rebound, was Giannis’ ninth of the game, in addition to his 23 points and 13 assists, leaving him one rebound shy of a triple-double.
So instead of dribbling out the clock, Giannis dribbled to the opposing basket and intentionally missed a layup, in order to collect his 10th rebound – and the triple double – before the final buzzer went off.
The NBA however then rescinded Antetokounmpo’s 10th rebound, taking away the triple-double, as league rules say that for a field-goal attempt to count as official, the player has to shoot “with intent to score a field-goal”.
While Giannis’ attempt wasn’t according to the players’ codex either, it wasn’t the worst attempt to stat-pad… by a far… Let’s have a look at the two worst attempts of in-game stat-padding, the NBA has ever seen.
First up is Andray Blatche, who tried everything humanly possible to get his 10th rebound back in 2010. It would have been funny as hell, if it hadn’t been so disrespectful to the opponent.
In the end, Blatche wasn’t able to grab a 10th rebound, therefore being one rebound shy of his first and only NBA triple double ever.
He finished with 20 points, 13 assists and 9 rebounds.
Even worse?! Ricky Davis! On March 16, 2003, with a 25-point lead and just 6 seconds remaining in the game, Cleveland Cavaliers guard Ricky Davis purposely shot and missed a layup at his own basket in a cheap attempt to notch his first career triple-double. At the time Davis had 26 points, 12 assists and 9 rebounds.
Utah Jazz guard DeShawn Stevenson immediately took exception and fouled Ricky Davis hard. Following the game, Utah coach Jerry Sloan spoke on the incident and said he was “glad DeShawn tried to knock him down” and that if he were a player he “would’ve knocked him on his ass.”
In the face of a national outcry, the Cavaliers fined him an undisclosed amount for unsportsmanlike conduct. The play also led to Davis being nicknamed “Wrong Rim Ricky”.
